Donald Duck getting star on Walk of Fame

Donald Duck gettingstar on Walk of Fame
HOLLYWOOD -- Donald Duck is finally getting some respect.
The famous hotheaded animated Disney character is being honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame to be unveiled today in front of the Disney Store on Hollywood Boulevard.
Johnny Grant, honorary mayor of Hollywood and chairman of the Walk of Fame Committee, is presiding. Disney chief executive Michael Eisner, Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Goofy, Daisy Duck and Donald can next be seen Aug. 17 in Disney's direct-to-DVD "The Three Musketeers," the first feature-length film starring Donald, Mickey Mouse and Goofy together.
'Princess Diaries' gainswide variety of fans
LOS ANGELES -- Anne Hathaway has been surprised by the range of fans won over by her 2001 hit "The Princess Diaries."
Though the story of an awkward teen transformed into royalty appealed heavily to young girls and their moms, male crowds also liked it, Hathaway said. Even businessmen.
"The movie showed on planes it seems like forever," Hathaway said in an interview last week with The Associated Press. "Businessmen in particular got to see it that way, which is not the typical audience for the film," Hathaway said. "But they would come up to me and say, 'I saw your movie on an airplane and really liked it.'"
Hathaway and co-star Julie Andrews reprise their roles in "Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement," which opens this week.
Mellencamp says he's protesting abuse of values
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- John Mellencamp has joined a coalition of musicians trying to unseat President Bush, but the rocker says that doesn't mean he has anything against Republicans.
"If there was a Democrat in the White House, and this was going on, we'd still be doing this," Mellencamp told The Herald-Times of Bloomington in an interview published Sunday.
"This is a protest. It's a protest about the abuse of what we feel are American values. And in this case, it just so happens that, yes, this is a Republican president, and yes, the proceeds will go to efforts to defeat that Republican president."
Mellencamp has joined Bruce Springsteen, the Dixie Chicks and other musicians in a series of October concerts aimed at defeating President Bush's re-election.
A July fund-raiser that raised $7.5 million for John Kerry's presidential campaign included Mellencamp performing "Texas Bandito," which refers to Bush as "a cheap thug."
"I wasn't very politically active before this administration," Mellencamp said. "I had political views, but I always used to say, 'I don't want to hang on anybody's cross or stand on anybody's soapbox. Whatever I need to say, I'll say in my songs.' But things are different now."
Mellencamp said a growing intolerance for opposing viewpoints in this nation inspired his participation in the "Vote for Change" series of 34 shows in 28 cities.
Mellencamp, a southern Indiana native, has written songs on social issues, such as "Pink Houses" and "Rain on the Scarecrow." He co-founded Farm Aid in 1985 with Willie Nelson and Neil Young.
Notable deaths
Actor Dimitris Papamichail, who began his career in Greek drama and gained fame portraying working-class characters in dozens of movies, died of a heart attack Sunday. He was 70.
Geraldine Peroni, a film editor who frequently worked with director Robert Altman and was nominated for an Academy Award for his 1992 film "The Player," died Tuesday, her sister said. She was 51.
Today's birthdays
Former baseball manager Ralph Houk is 85. Country singer-songwriter Merle Kilgore is 70. Rhythm and blues singer Billy Henderson (The Spinners) is 65. Comedian-director David Steinberg is 62. Actor Sam Elliott is 60. Boxing Hall-of-Famer Ken Norton is 59. Actress Melanie Griffith is 47. Actress Amanda Bearse is 46. Rapper Kurtis Blow is 45. Singer Aimee Mann is 44. Singer Whitney Houston is 41. Football player Deion Sanders is 37. Actress Gillian Anderson is 36. Actor Eric Bana is 36. Rock musician Arion Salazar (Third Eye Blind) is 34.